论中国海洋史上的两次发展机遇与丧失的原因

宋元时期和明末清初,是中国海洋发展史上的两次发展机遇,但分别被明清政府所扼杀。东南沿海商民的海外开拓,在极端专制的明清政府看来,是游离于朝廷控制的不安定因素,必须予以打击。郑和则是实施明初海外政策的执行者,其结果是中国背向海洋,毁灭了宋元时期中国走向海洋大国的机遇。郑芝龙海商集团的崛起是中国海洋发展史上的第二次机遇。但满清入主中原后,建立同样的极端专制统治,基本上继承明代的内外政策,葬送了明末清初中国海洋发展的第二次机遇。在明清数百年东南沿海商民面向海洋和朝廷背向海洋的抗争中,强大的中央政权都是最后的胜利者。

On the Two Opportunities for Development in China's Ocean History And the Causes for Their Losses

The Song - Yuan Dynasties and the late Ming - early Qing Dynasties should otherwise have been the two opportunities for development in the Chinese history of ocean development which were respectively snuffed out by the Ming and Qing governments. In the view of the extremely autocratic Qing government, the overseas development of merchants from China's southeast coast constituted an instable factor which were beyond control of the court and therefore had to be banned. Zheng He was the executor of the overseas policies adopted by the early Ming government which led to China turning its back towards the ocean and losing the opportunities for China to become an oceanic power during the Song and Yuan Dynasties. The rise of Zheng Long Zhi maritime commerce group marked the second opportunity in Chinese history of ocean development. However, after the Manchu ruled the Central Plains of China and established the Qing Dynasty, they maintained the same extremely autocratic rule as that of the Ming Dynasty and basically continued the latter's internal and foreign policies, so as to ruin the second opportunity for China" s maritime development during the late Ming - early Qing Dynasties. In the contention of the merchants along China's southeast coast who were oriented to the sea against the court" s tuming its back towards the sea during the hundreds of years in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the powerful central governments had always been the final winners.